The Ass Kicking Continues

Today is the second kemo treatment for Kathy.  I have already posted about the reason for using "kemo" instead of chemo.  I think the word treatment is better than infusion, too.  There are spa treatments, acupuncture treatments--all things designed to enhance your health.  The first part of the word is treat--now that is going a bit too far!  But words and their subtle connotations have an effect on moods and even the subconscious. 

The cancer treatment and support world agrees.  We don't have cancer patients or cancer victims, we have cancer survivors.  That is an important distinction.  But I found an even better one that has been developed by cancer bloggers.  Cancer asskicker.

Kathy, kick some serious cancer ass today at your kemo treatment!

Books, Books, Books!

Today Kathy goes in to have the port installed.  Think of it as a doggy (or kitty) door for her protector, Kemo!  

Meanwhile, here is a list of books that I have compiled.  I have only read one of them (The Middle Place, which I really liked) but they all come highly recommended from blogs of survivors and the reviews on Amazon or Google Books were 4 or more stars.  They are all linked to author websites or to Google Books where they can be perused.  

Cookbooks

What to Eat During Cancer Treatment, published by the American Cancer Society

The Cancer Fighting Kitchen, by Rebecca Katz

Guides and Memoirs

The Breast Cancer Book, by Ruth H. Grobstein, M.D., Ph.D.

Breast Cancer? Let me check my schedule!, by Peggy McCarthy, Jo An Loren, Donna Cederberg

The Middle Place, by Kelly Corrigan

Uplift: Secrets from the Sisterhood of Breast Cancer Survivors, by Barbara Delinsky

Run, Walk, Swim, Bike,... whatever

Get out there and do it for health.  Do it for life!



I've always liked Melissa Ethridge. So glad that she is a Survivor!

The Specs

In initial conversations with Kathy about the blog, one of the things we decided was not to give so much information that readers would become cancer experts!  On the other hand, the teacher in me can't resist the opportunity to point people in the direction of knowledge.  The online world makes that so easy!  So here is the "spec sheet" for Kathy's cancer, with a link for further illumination, if desired.

Kathy's Breast Cancer

Type:  Invasive Lobular Carcinoma (ILC)
Prevalence:  20,000 women in U. S. per year, about 20% of all breast cancers
Most Common Type:  Invasive Ductal Carcinoma (IDC)

Comparison:
Outlook for ILC more favorable than IDC
ILC more difficult to find with mammogram, usually larger at detection than IDC

Hormone effects:  Hormone receptor positive, so this cancer is affected by hormones (estrogen or progesterone--I don't remember which one) and tamoxifen is being used.

Symptoms:  Can cause thickening of breast tissue rather than a lump.  Can also cause changes in skin texture. (This is important for people to know!  You aren't just looking for lumps when you do a breast exam!)

The Diagnostic Tests:  Mammogram followed by (in no particular order) ultrasound, MRI, and biopsy (am I missing anything, Kathy, seems like you had it all!)

Immediate plan:  Two rounds of kemo, with 4 infusions each.  Each infusion spaced two weeks apart (on Thursdays). 

Later:  Radiation and surgery then back to normal!

Do You Have Attitude?

Here is another website I have found.  These chemochicks have attitude and a half!  They have put together an interesting site with advice, products, and, most important of all, humor!  Not as funny as Kathy at the Curriculum Committee meetings, but...
;-)

Suggestions

When I started looking online at other cancer blogs, one of the common themes I saw was humor. For example, here is a link to some coping strategies from ChemoBabe.  I've also started to hear suggestions from friends who have experienced cancer or been a support for someone with cancer.  I'm sure Kathy has heard some, too. 


I remember when I had jaw surgery, had my jaw wired shut and was restricted to a liquid diet.  I got lots of suggestions from people.  There were a couple of other people who'd had a similar surgery and they gave me two of the most helpful things.  One was a recipe for a great soup and warning that I would get sick of fruity liquids.  The other (stop reading here if you don't want Too Much Information!) was to get Q-tips to clean out my nose.  (The doctor and nurses didn't tell me ahead of time about this, but I was not allowed to blow my nose for weeks.  The surgery had been on my upper jaw and had involved my nose--however the body's response to insult is mucous production and drainage.  Enough said!)  Anyway, I don't know what I would have done without the Q-tip suggestion!  You would think that the health care professionals would have these kinds of tips, but I guess it takes actually living it to know some things!


So...
I'm looking for suggestions for Kathy.  Somewhere in the list will be indispensable ideas similar to the soup and Q-tips above.  If you've been through it, I'm sure you will have some of these gems.  If you haven't been through it, but know someone who has, ask them what were the two most useful ideas.  Share them here in comments.  Or if you know of a useful website, share the link.  I will be creating a list of links in the sidebar.

The Worst of the First is Over

True to predictions, Kathy had an achy, tired, coming-down-with-something day on Friday and then a worse day on Saturday.  On Sunday she felt like she would be able to get up and come walk with us, but by the time she got ready she decided to stay home and do only her regular 30 minutes of walking by herself. By yesterday she said she felt well enough that if it she'd had to work she could have.  No kemo this week, but lots of appointments--a scan, installation of the port catheter for ease of kemo, another biopsy.  So we're really glad to hear that the worst effects from the first kemo are over and she can feel ok while she does all this in the coming week.